Night of the Butterflies
by Rin Fang
Summary: Timmy makes a fatal mistake, causing Cosmo's death and the discovery of the fairies. Enraged, they enter a universe-altering war with the humans, and now Wanda, along with an unlikely ally, must fight against all to set everything right... Contains SLASH!
1. Ninety Meters From the Ground

**Yay~ A new story. I haven't uploaded a new one in awhile. This here is a tribute fic dedicated to Wanda. And someone else. But the pairing in question will be a surprise, hurr-durr. I apologize for the short first chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own FOP. Butch Hartman does. If I did own it, I'd be happy.**

**Warning****: Contains Yuri. Might possibly re-rate if I get too smuttastic. If you don't like girls with girls, I advise you don't read this.**

Night of the Butterflies

Rin Fang

[01. Ninety-Meters From The Ground.]

He was falling.

Where he was falling, why he was falling, he couldn't tell…

He didn't care.

But he was falling; back arched and graceful, descending into cavernous depths. Above him, a crowd assembled at the ledge of the cliff, leering cowards, torches intermingling with the night stars. It was pretty up ahead… The constellations twinkled down.

Suffering, he lifted his head to look at the stars one last time, but a sharp whip of air lashed his head back, sending great waves of pain rollicking throughout his scrawny body.

Agony.

"What… happened…?" he attempted to choke, although it didn't matter. No one could hear him. He was alone… alone… alone… forced to bear it out in his final moments.

"What did I do wrong?"

Gravity was against him; it pulled his short and compact form down even quicker. He accelerated, accelerated. With one last fainthearted effort, he forced his fine gossamer wings, plastered to his back by the wind, to expand.

Rip.

Pain.

What happened…?

His wing was torn right away from his body. Green eyes expanding, he watched in muted horror as the silken appendage fluttered uselessly away into the chasms, leaving him behind… plummeting.

He could feel the presence of the ground near him.

Lower.

Lower.

Terminal velocity.

Pain erupted all throughout him. His back stung, his neck had to be broken… Now he felt icy cold water seep through his eyes, his nose, his ears, a hungry panther going in for the kill.

He might be able to swim out… no. It was no use.

Even if he did survive, he would never be able to find his family. A human boy child, a domineering yet kindhearted wife, a doddering toddler. How had it been that one moment, they were breaking in to the human boy's school, trying to retrieve the homework he had forgotten, and the next, were being pursued by a group of mad men with machine guns, nets, syringes. He, always the butt of many a wimp joke, assumed the responsibility to create a diversion, and in doing so, they chased him out to the bluffs by the ocean. He would have taken flight, but their female leader shot him at the last second, leaving a gaping wound in his stomach, and causing him to fall into the unforgiving tidewaters.

Now that he realized it, he hadn't really cared about the blood. He just wanted to see his family. He'd make it out from the ocean…

No!

He could see searchlights… they had helicopters?

He had a mission beyond his own selfish desires; he had to protect the identity of his species.

So what if he was the sacrificial lamb?

If they wouldn't be locked away to be experimented on, his spirit would be fine.

His species was hardy… it would take willpower to die.

Tears—or was it seawater—clung to his eyelids, and he opened his mouth, swallowing gulp after gulp of seawater. He couldn't taste it… but it was horrible. Water finally encased him completely; gravity woke up…

He was falling.

The chasms became darker, the night deepened.

And the stars became nothing but a dream…


	2. Mourning Song

**I wasn't going to update this for a while, I said. Other fanfics were higher priority, I said. ** **I guess I said wrong, because out of the blue I decided to work on this again. Thank you for all your kind reviews, and if you celebrate it, have a happy Valentine's Day. Now enjoy my dark fanfiction. C:**

**Um, and Mrs. Doombringer's full name is Mary Alice, right? Please correct me if I'm wrong.**

[02. Mo(u)rning Song]

Morning was on heel and toe, rapidly spreading and illuminating the surrounding countryside in the blanket of eternal comfort. Everyday, the sun was bound to rise. A reliable thing it was, this sun, always to rise and always to set.

Security was a wonderful amenity.

But light from outside never quite reached the inside of a certain fairy's home.

The female fay, who proudly labeled herself as a "godparent", lived in the place—shaped like a fishbowl's accessory castle—for thousands of years, and she wasn't keen on soon letting it go due to a little extra vitamin D.

Magic was an interesting thing, really, and she was lucky to possess the ability to perform it.

Where outside her abode looked small, it was actually a mansion of sorts, full of hallways and curiosities and a thousand even doors that she wasn't even sure what the contents inside were.

But it was an empty place, with only she and her small family. A waste of space and a killer to maintain, not to mention that the doors were jinxed and would never open up to any definite room.

Still, a protective place to live.

No one would ever find them there.

The fairy woman, her toddler, and her human "godson" were huddled by the indoor pool, Olympic-sized and shimmering a pristine aqua blue. The ceiling was high, letting the cold trap inside and chill the water even further. The pool was over-chlorinated; the human teenager rubbed the tears from his burning eyes away every few minutes, and scratched at his exposed skin.

The rash was pool-influenced, but the teary eyes were not.

Ever since the unexpected rendezvous last night, he'd been crying about how it was his fault his godfather couldn't be found, that fairies were discovered.

She, in turn, replied that they were only at the school on a perfectly innocent quest, and there was no way they could have known a group of fairy hunters were stalking them. Besides, only physical evidence could prove their existence, and her husband was a fast one, just stupid. He'd probably lost his way and was trying to find his way home right now.

Still, she understood his sentiments. She was even beginning to worry as well. He'd a strong bond with her husband ever since he was ten, so it made sense that the fourteen-year-old felt guilty.

"Hey, Wanda!" came a cry from the pool.

The boy was wrestling with the toddler, holding him high above his head.

"Poof, poof!" protested the little one, squirming.

"What is it, Timmy?"

The woman, Wanda, was so preoccupied with her thoughts and worries that she forgot where they were.

Timmy set the kid down by the poolside, and crawled out to dry off. He'd been preoccupying the child all night with trivial games to keep him from crying for his father. He shook himself like a dog, and wrapped his scrawny body in a towel.

"Is it true…? That woman, the one who was running after us last night… has Mrs. Doombringer returned?"

Wanda sighed, shivering and picking her babe up. He cooed when he felt her embrace, Wanda's chest tightened with fear for his sire.

"Silver hair? Beady eyes? Yeah, that's her."

Timmy shuffled to her side.

"You think that of ALL the substitute teachers we could have gotten when Crocker's away, we got HER."

"Yep."

"And she brought her friends."

"Yep."

"That's bad."

"Really bad."

"Um, Wanda? Do I have to go to school today? What if she remembers me?"

Wanda nodded. "I understand, sport. Better safe than sorry. After all, you remember what happened the last time she came."

Wanda waved her fairy wand, an object used to channel magic that she'd been clutching in her hand for several hours, and with a puff, a second Timmy appeared, backpack, pink cap and all.

Waving it once again, the doppelganger was teleported to school.

"Might as well not play 'hooky', though. Rather have Doombringer tear a clone apart than the original."

Timmy nodded, frosted blue eyes toward the floor.

"You're still worried about Cosmo, aren't you?"

Timmy nodded again, in pure concern for his godfather.

"I can't help but think… something terrible has happened. All because I wanted a good grade. What if he got caught?"

He clenched his palms, gulping in the chlorinated air.

"Timmy… sweetie! Don't be afraid! Even if Cosmo was caught, our emergency forces are superior! They'd fix everything in no time! Now, I'm going out to retrieve him. He was headed toward the ocean last night, so he's probably cowering under some hot dog stand."

Wanda rolled her eyes, although, deep down, she did have the same horrid feeling.

"Timmy, why don't you watch Poof while I'm gone? Don't let him out of your sight at all, and absolutely no exploring! You might get lost in here!"

She handed him her kid, whom he let float in the air, wings working to keep up with his tiny body.

"Got it. You promise you'll be back in a few hours?"

"I promise."

Another wave of the wand, and she was gone.

"Well, Poof, it's just you and me."

"Poof!" replied he.

Although he was three years old and perfectly capable of forming logical sentences, Poof chose to not speak as much as possible.

"So, we're stuck at the pool all day… what d'ya wanna do?"

"Hide 'n go seek?"

"In the water…?"

"Hide 'n seek!"

Poof started drifting out to one of the many doors connected to the pool.

"Poof…! Wait, what am I doing? Sitting around is boring, sooo… why not? I'm it!"

"Poof!"

The toddler wrapped his tiny fingers around one of the door knobs, opened it, disappeared into the room, closed it, and was never heard of again.

Timmy was off in the corner, racking his brains on how to keep the kid entertained all day without Wanda, and trying to find a decent way to cheat.

"One, two, three… twenty! Ready or not, here I come!"

Timmy darted toward the same door, but when he slammed it open… it wasn't the same room.

"Oh. Cheese."

Poof was nowhere to be found!

XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX

Wanda knew better than to show her true form out in public, so she had disguised herself as a (still) conspicuous pink seagull. Fairies weren't the best shapeshifters around, and their forms often reflected their eye color.

She soared overhead, and finally spying the beach, landed on an outcropping of rock. The sea crashed around her, and the smell of the fresh salt air wafted through her nose.

"Cosmo?" she called, turning her head every which-way. "Cosmo…!!!! I have cookies, and your favorite nickel, and… ARE YOU HERE, COSMO?"

"We've been looking all over for him, Wanda. Don't be silly."

Another pink seagull landed on the same rock, accompanied by others of all colors of the rainbow.

She gave a seagull smirk, and nodded her head.

Wanda cursed under her breath, not happy to see her twin sister, Blonda, or the rest of her species.

"We started searching right away when the news got to us about the fairy hunters in town. You might want to hang tight while we search. Awful irresponsible, leaving him like that."

Wanda growled, lunging at her. Blonda flapped to the side, laughing.

"However, we did find something on the bluffs that might be of interest to you. Swizzle! Juan!"

Deep from the crowd, two fairies came forward, bearing something in their beaks.

A wing.

A disembodied fairy wing.

**A/N: Rather unproductive chapter, ain't it? I assure you it'll get "better" soon.**


	3. Nervous Boy in a Narrow Room

**Almost done with my other FOP project! That means that I can start focusing on this one, and make my updates more "consistent". I'm really looking forward to this story. Thank you one and all for your support. It's very encouraging. :3**

[03. Nervous Boy in a Narrow Room]

"Poof! Hey, Poof!"

Timmy opened door after door, frowning whenever the fruits of his labor went overripe. He was already two hours into the madcap search for his little godbrother, and was getting a bit fatigued.

Who knew where Poof was travelling? There were a thousand doors in this house that never opened up to the same room, and Poof could be travelling throughout all of them right at that very moment. There was a low probability that they would meet, something he learned when he bothered to pay attention in school.

"Poof! The game's over! You win!"

No reply. Timmy sighed. His feet were crying for him to stop walking, and his stomach growled. Not to mention that he was apprehensive. Wanda was extremely protective of her only son, and she could be downright scary if anything unfortunate ever befell him. Losing him counted. At least he wouldn't be yelled at so much on Cosmo's end… he was pretty easygoing, so much that it was almost scary.

Cosmo.

Timmy's stomach tightened once more as he remembered what Wanda was out for. It was funny that she hadn't recovered him yet. Couldn't they call each other on their wands if they got separated? Even if Cosmo didn't have his on him—which would be way strange—if Wanda took his pet nickel with her, he'd be lured out of hiding in a heartbeat.

This entire thought gave him a sinking feeling in the gut, and he couldn't help but wonder if fairies could die easily. Long ago, Cosmo and Wanda told him that although they were very hardy and were endowed with an eternal lifespan, fairies COULD be killed under extraordinary circumstances. The events last night didn't count as extraordinary circumstances, did they?

… Did they?

Maybe he shouldn't think about it right now. He had better things to do. Timmy staggered on over to another door. He could've sworn he saw it somewhere earlier today, but what did it matter? He was just going to enter another room. Muttering to himself, he swung it open, and sauntered inside.

He kind of wished that he hadn't entered.

Timmy found himself in a narrow hall, overall dark with only flickering overhead lights to compensate for the lack of sun. The whole place was dusty, and portraits, paint chipping away from lack of care, rimmed the walls. Twenty pairs of painted eyes stared at him, taking in his fear.

Yes… he knew all right. Definitely, from the first time he ever entered the castle.

The Hall of Infamy, where Cosmo and Wanda's less savory children ended up artistically rendered and hung to remind them of what a potentially bad godchild was like. Timmy paced down the hall, scrutinizing every picture for all they were worth. He hated how every child here was smiling, as though happy that they exploited their godparents' powers for their own cruel interests. Right… he recognized that kid who liked to set tornadoes on trailer parks, and next to him was… was…

Marianne.

Uggh. He hated the little redhead. He'd once wished that she'd come back from the sands of time to tell him what she did to become "famous", when the cunning minx decided that instead she wanted to steal one of her ex-fairies' wands and ran amuck until and equally cunning Wanda managed to silence her. She was nothing compared to the other oddities he'd been introduced to during the years, but there was something about her that stuck in his mind… her ruthlessness? Her wisdom beyond her years? Wait… he remembered. It was Wanda, and how she seemed to show compassion for her even when she stole her belongings.

Perhaps he remembered how understanding Wanda could be to him sometimes, as well. And because of that, when he looked into this painting's glossy eyes, he saw himself there, as well… But should he compare himself to a little girl who presumably started World War I?

"Poof, poof!"

Timmy's thoughts were interrupted, and vision adjusting, caught the silhouette of a jump-suited lump huddled in the corner.

"Poof…! There you are! I've been looking all over for you!"

Timmy raced forward and scooped him up, gently scolding him.

"Come on; we've got to get back to the pool, and… uhh… Do you know the way back?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The weather was sweltering hot.

Wanda scuttled through the cliffs by the beach, disguised as a hermit crab, and combing over every nook and cranny as she searched for Cosmo. The rest of the fairies who volunteered to help her were a small bunch, mainly secluded to friends and family. Well, except for Juandissimo, who was her ex-boyfriend, and Swizzle, whom she only spoke to once.

But there was a saying in Fairyworld, the colony from which she came, and that was that all fairies felt a sense of interconnection, and couldn't help themselves by assisting others when they were in trouble.

Some of the fairies were stray dogs gathered on the beach, speaking to each other in hushed voices, some were seagulls searching for Cosmo via the air, and others, like Wanda, were hermit crabs, spreading bits of his two favorite foods—corn and bacon—all over the ground to attract him.

"Are you sure he went to the beach?" grunted Wanda's uncle, Carmine, next to her.

She nodded fervently.

"Yes, sir. It's not like he'd swim across the ocean to get away from the fairy hunters."

"Fairy hunters?" Carmine snorted. "Incompetents, every one. Well… not all of them, but in general…"

Wanda shrugged.

"About Cosmo's wing… Do you suppose he just molted?"

Carmine snorted again, and clapped a hand-claw across her shell.

"Molted? No chance, my dear. That wing was ripped from his back… oh, don't give me that look! It can be reattached with surgery. Although… it's funny we haven't found him yet. Have you tried contacting him?"

"Yes… but he won't pick up his wand. I mean, we're attached to each other because we share magic, but I can't seem to… feel… life on the other end."

Wanda's eyes widened, and she clapped a hand to her mouth, just as a polka-dotted seal poked her head from the waves and started screaming for all the fairies to meet up. The crabs, and the dogs, and the gulls, they all waved their wands to meet up at the rock they'd started at.

The fairy who was swimming, Radish, was blubbering on and on in incoherent sentences. It was only when she presented what she had in her mouth that she got a reaction.

A drooping wand, caught in fishnet tinged scarlet with blood. Only a scrap of fishnet that the wand tore when the catch was being reeled up, and sunk to the ocean floor. Everyone was screaming and gasping. Wanda, knees weak with disbelief, stumbled up to the piece of evidence and read the signature on the wand:

"COSMO".

It was supposed to be straight as an arrow, signifying that its carrier was healthy. But it wasn't, and that was what made Wanda drop to her knees.

"Cos… mo…"

"PUNY FAIRIES!"

The moment was ruined with a boom. Smoke curled across the beach and cleared, and the self-proclaimed "toughest fairy in the universe" and political figure, Jorgen van Strangle, was glaring at them all. He was holding a rubber ducky in his muscled hand, suggesting that this deal interrupted his bath. And he didn't look too amused, either.

"YOU!" He pointed at Wanda. Jorgen was the type to yell a lot, and her legs melted into jelly. Jorgen grabbed her and picked her up, squeezing her tiny body and holding her to eye level. "It's your fault! Fairies… trial… NOW!"

"What's going on?" whimpered one called Binky.

"We've found your husband." Jorgen hissed at Wanda, who struggled in his vise-like grip.

"Please… I've got to get home to Timmy and Poof first!"

"NO! You are going to the trial now, and we will bring the egg and puny human!"

"What's this trial about… ?"

Jorgen squeezed her tighter, meaning serious business.

"It's about YOU, you irresponsible murderer!"


End file.
